Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Shares Sold by Key Client Fiduciary Advisors LLC

Key Client Fiduciary Advisors LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 8.2% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 7,942 shares of the company’s stock after selling 714 shares during the quarter. Key Client Fiduciary Advisors LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $790,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of MRK. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 3rd quarter valued at about $32,000. AM Squared Ltd acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the third quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the third quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 121.8% in the 2nd quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC now owns 326 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 179 shares during the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

NYSE:MRK opened at $96.57 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $99.85 and its 200 day moving average price is $109.11. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $94.48 and a 52-week high of $134.63. The firm has a market cap of $244.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.24, a PEG ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.39.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $16.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.47 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 36.42% and a net margin of 19.23%. The company’s revenue was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.13 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 8th. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th were paid a $0.81 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 16th. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.36%. This is a boost from Merck & Co., Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 67.92%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently commented on MRK shares. Barclays lowered their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Daiwa America lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $115.00 target price for the company. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $155.00 price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $123.00.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

Merck & Co, Inc is a health care company, which engages in the provision of health solutions through its prescription medicines, vaccines, biologic therapies, animal health, and consumer care products. It operates through the following segments: Pharmaceutical, Animal Health, and Other. The Pharmaceutical segment includes human health pharmaceutical and vaccine products.